


WHITE TEA & SAGE | (o.toru)

by altverified



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Cross-Posted on Wattpad, Death, F/M, Marriage, Possible sex scenes, Reader-Insert, fear of rain, ive never posted on here before lol, mostly cannon, no seriously so much angst, probably slow updates, timeskip oikawa
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-18 21:21:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28873755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/altverified/pseuds/altverified
Summary: ❛ his scent still lingers,i can’t let him go ❜▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃; love comes in all forms. theirs came in b&w movies and smelt like white tea & sage.[oikawa tōru x reader]© writing© furudate ; haikyuu© 2020
Relationships: Oikawa Tooru/Reader
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	1. ZERO

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first time posting on ao3 so please bear with me <3

**ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO AN END**.

we're taught that lesson from a very young age. whether it be when our favourite picture book ends, or recess is over, or our friend has to go home at the end of an hour long playdate. all things end eventually, and when we're caught up in the moment it's hard to truly cherish what we love or who we appreciate most because we're too busy living.

there's nothing wrong with living in the moment, but you need to still take moments from time-to-time to look around you and think _"wow. look at everything i have, i'm grateful for it. look at those around me, i'm grateful for them,"_ because we never expect those things to be ripped out from under us and taken away; to end.

it can come in the form of your favourite series getting canceled. _or your husband getting hit by a bus._ either-or, really.

so cherish everything you have before it's ripped out from under you. take a minute every day to count your blessings and adore everything you have. hold your loved ones especially close, because you never think that today could be the day you lose them. love them with everything you have. never go to bed angry. hold them close every chance you get, even for a fleeting second, because you never know when it may be their last.


	2. ONE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ❛ his scent still lingers,  
> i can’t let him go ❜
> 
> ▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃
> 
> ; love comes in all forms. theirs came in b&w movies and smelt like white tea & sage.

**OIKAWA TŌRU HATED WALKING HOME ON RAINY DAYS.**

**[l/n] [y/n]** knew that. she knew every inch of the boy, really. his thoughts. his desires. his hands, which were holding the tips of her fingers so desperately as they crossed the crosswalk.

the pavement reeked of the rain pouring from the sky, clouding everyones vision and soaking those who were unfortunate enough to be trapped out in the saturated weather, just as **[l/n]** and oikawa were. spring was often pleasant in miyagi, with days upon days of sunshine and little-to-no rain gracing the flowers that decorated the streets near aoba johsai. today had just happened to be a day where the rain reared its ugly head upon miyagi and cried its sorrowful and sopping tears.

**[l/n]** felt the grip on her fingers tighten as a particularly speedy car raced past the two of them, splashing a puddle on the road towards them and just narrowly missing. she looked up to the mousy haired boy and offered a reassuring smile, as if to ease his nerves. he just continued to bite his pink painted lips, the skin growing raw and irritated as he nervously played with her fingers.

the stinging of the wound felt like a slap on the wrist to him, but he couldn't help it.

"we'll leave ten minutes early next time," the girl suggested, **[h/c]** locks completely drenched in the pestering rain. even if his hand wasn't in hers, or if she couldn't see his nervous lip biting, she would've known that he was nervous just by the anxiety radiating off of him, covering everything around them in an invisible brittle mist.

_'if only practice hadn't ran late,'_ she mentally cursed. as proud as she was of oikawa for being captain of the volleyball team, she hated how he had to stay late when the weather was bad. they always missed the bus and she always said _"we'll leave earlier next time"_ knowing full well that they wouldn't be able to. the cold pins and needles of the sharp rain wasn't the only thing causing her pain; the sight of the boy beside her biting his lips raw was already enough to sting her.

their surroundings grew more and more familiar until their dress and tennis shoe covered feet found themselves under the damp welcome mat of the **[h/c]** girl's house in the suburbs. it was relatively closer to the school than oikawas, which made it the primary spot for oikawa to retreat to whenever the fitful weather acted out. the door shut softly behind the two as she dragged the adorably coiffed boy into the foyer, their clothes sopping and their socks soggy. wet clothing was one of the most unpleasant feelings in the world to the **[e/c]** eyed girl and she wasn't afraid to voice how she felt about it.

"of course it has to rain the day i wear my new shoes!" she exclaimed from the laundry room, which was just off the foyer that oikawa idled in. her proclamation of her hate for the weather seemed to be her attempt to lighten the mood, and she couldn't tell if it was working or not. the house was pleasantly quiet with no sounds other than the clock on the wall ticking continuously and the rain beating down on the sidewalks outside. it echoed through out the house and cast a soft of gloomy shadow over everything it touched.

"here," she said as she came out still in her wet clothes, a bundle of different coloured garments in her arms as she finished rifling through the dryer. "my parents aren't going to be home until late, so we'll get whatever you want for dinner, alright?"

oikawa nodded, a thanks gracing his lips as he caught the bundle of clothes that she threw at him. it seemed to be a mix of his own pajama pants and her dads t-shirt, as well as a random pair of socks and (thankfully) his own pair of underwear.

"where's your brother tonight?" oikawa called from the bathroom, the door wide open as he pulled on the red and black checkered pants he had forgotten god knows how many times at her house. her dads black t-shirt was extremely baggy on him, but he could live with it. he was just thankful he wouldn't have to sit in his soggy school uniform or sweaty volleyball clothes.

"hockey games back-to-back tonight," she responded from the kitchen, voice lowering significantly once he entered the room. he held back a laugh as he watched her struggle to rifle through the tall cabinets. "that's where my parents are tonight."

"so, we have the house to ourselves?"

**[l/n]** couldn't help but let out a laugh at her best friends underlying suggestion. it bubbled up into the air and seemed to clear the dusty gloom that had settled itself over everything with the accompanying rain. oikawa couldn't suppress a smile. "in your dreams."

"well, they don't have to be dreams it you don't want them to," he suggested as non-chalantly as he could, plopping down onto her white leather sofa and sprawling his long limbs across the cool surface, melting into it like butter on popcorn as his muscles gave a faint ache from his earlier practice. he wouldn't have practiced extra hard if he knew he was walking home.

"oikawa," she said, amusement on her tone but with a creeping seriousness tugging at the edges. "you can't be serious."

he stayed silent for a minute as he sat up to look at her. he studied her features, the way the corners of her mouth slightly turned downwards now as she stared at him with slightly sunken eyes that he could only assume were from the recent lack of sleep she refused to talk about that originated from her stressful student council duties weighting down on her (though she denied that anything was wrong and that she was just exhausted more often from her brother). he could see the look in her eyes as the light bounced off them. it was serious and penetrating and slightly wistful.

"i'm just joking,"

it didn't hurt her when he said that he was joking. in fact, it offered a twisted sort of sense of relief to coarse through the **[h/c]** haired girl. she wouldn't know how to respond if he was serious. they were just finishing their second year and **[y/n]** was too focused on school duties, sports manager duties, and student council to have to worry about throwing a crush into the mix.

the two had always had a sort of dynamic between them where they were comfortable with each other in every way. even physically. she wasn't sure if she wanted to ruin that or not.

"i'm just joking," he repeated after she didn't say anything for a few seconds.

there was a sense of reassurance in his voice, but she couldn't discern if it was reassurance for her or himself.


	3. TWO

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ❛ his scent still lingers,  
> i can’t let him go ❜
> 
> ▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃
> 
> ; love comes in all forms. theirs came in b&w movies and smelt like white tea & sage.

**THE NEXT RAINFALL DIDN'T COME UNTIL THE FIRST EXAMS OF THEIR 3RD YEAR.**

summer was anything but dry in miyagi, but the year of **[l/n]** and oikawa's third year really took the cake for precipitation. it was at an all-time high, and the once thirsty water beds that **[l/n]** and oikawa passed during the last rainfall only months ago overflowed with the skys dreadful tears.

**[l/n]** waited outside the school for her best friend, damp tennis shoes making tracks on the untouched concrete that rested outside the school doors. students occasionally poured out the doors in tired groups, but she had seen no sign of her rich haired friend. their phones were taken during the exam and they were in different classes, so she had no way of meeting him other than their previous decided decision to meet at the exact doors she had been pacing for the half hour since she finished her exam.

as she heard the school doors open to the side of her, her heart leapt in her throat and she turned to see her tired friend clad in his favourite white sweatpants and volleyball team sweatshirt. she ran into his arms, inhaling his scent of white tea and sage that followed him wherever he went and clung to several surfaces in her home from his excessive visiting.

"i bombed it, tōru," she whimpered into his chest, "my parents are gonna kill me!"

oikawa squeezed his arms tightly around the girl, a pang in his chest as he listened to her distressed voice. he hated hearing her upset, even as rare as it was. he pulled away only slightly, tucking a finger under her tear soaked chin to tilt her flushed face upwards towards his. he offered a reassuring smile, the corners of his eyes crinkling ever-so slightly. "it'll be fine. they know that history isn't exactly your thing and, if worst comes to worst, i'll tutor you. does that sound good?"

she smiled slightly, her curled hands rubbing the stray tears away as she agreed to his terms. it lightened her mood to hear her friend offer such cushiony words. oikawa always made her feel better about her problems.

he continued to look at her flushed face until a certain sound filled his ears like static from a television. his eyes looked past her and to the trees, the drops of water rolling off the cushy green leaves and splashing down onto the earth below. he hadn't even noticed the weather, all of his attention trained on the girl in front of him, but when he noticed the smile fell off his face in an instant and his eyes became void, the hands on her shoulders tightening as he realized that now that his exam was over he'd have to go home. in the rain.

**[l/n]** noticed instantly. "it's fine, oikawa. i checked the bus schedule and there's one coming in ten minutes."

his eyes focus back towards her, a cheeky smile on her face. she knew him all too well apparently.

"thank you."

he hadn't even noticed how she had returned to calling him his last name. the informality she had disregarded when she was upset was back in place and oikawa didn't realize any of it until they were sitting on the bus stop bench, rain ricochetting off the thin metal roof above them. they had known each other since third year of middle school when she transferred to kitagawa and she hardly ever called him by his first name unless it was in the moment or she really needed his attention, despite having his permission to do so. it didn't bother him per se, he figured it was somehow similar to how iwaizumi called him nicknames instead of any actual name most of the time, but it slightly confused him.

"are you coming to mine?"

her question broke through the wall of his thoughts, his autumn eyes meeting her **[e/c]** ones as she curiously glanced at him. he didn't respond for a moment, pondering what to say. "oikawa?"

"why don't you ever call me tōru?"

he didn't mean to ask a question instead of answering hers. there was a thin line between his thoughts and his tongue and he accidentally crossed it, silently cursing himself as he did so while also being the tiniest bit curious on how she'd answer.

her face painted different emotions one at a time, each a beautiful stroke of colour and expression: confusion, contemplation, realization. a cycle of her thoughts right there for oikawa to see, only slightly tainted by the gloom of the rain as she mulled over her words.

"you never call me **[y/n]** ," she first countered, the twinge of amusement on her tongue and an upward twitch of her pillowy lips. "am i supposed to call you tōru?"

"am i supposed to call you **[y/n]**?" he retorted cheekily.

"touché, i guess," she shrugged. "i've never cared. you know that. i just figured since everyone else just called you oikawa, i should too."

"well you're not everyone else."

his words came out jumbled, the small strands of his baby hair sticking to his forehead from the rain they had to hike through to get to the bus stop. his lips were slightly parted, a hint to her that he was slightly in disbelief of what he had just said, as if he hadn't meant to say it aloud.

"alright then, _tōru_ ," a smirk graced her lips and oikawa was thankful that she didn't mention what he said. "are you coming to mine?"

he nodded now, a smile stretching his cheeks and offering a bit of sunlight through the rain. "yes please, _**[y/n]**_."

the two then laughed and tōru felt a heat course through him that made his cheeks tingle and his head spin. pure glee travelled through him and he suddenly felt that he could do anything in the world. adrenaline is a hell of a drug.

the bus ride was short, only a few minutes of riding on the bumpy pavement until they reached the bus stop near **[y/n]** 's house. a hop, skip, and a jump, and then they were home.

"haru, we're home!" she called as her and the tall boy entered the foyer, pulling their shoes off as she tucked her umbrella in the basket by the door. water droplets graced the tile, but she paid no mind, stepping around them and expecting tōru to do the same."haruto!"

the annoyance couldn't be masked in her voice and tōru suppressed a chuckle. **[y/n]** 's brother seemed to be a handful in recent days, especially since he started high school. if tōru could recall correctly, he was on the school hockey team as right wing, and the community's recreational team as vice captain. he was talented, but somewhat arrogant. **[y/n]** always said that's why tōru and haru got along so well. tōru liked to disagree.

they both heard a shout and padded footsteps come from the garage and soon enough out bounded haru through the connected man door, his blonde hair damp with sweat and a bright orange floor hockey puck tucked in his short pockets.

"what do you want?" he asked, slightly out of breath. "i thought you wouldn't be home until later. aren't dumb people supposed to take longer on their exams?"

"oh shut up!" she said, throwing one of the bottles of water she had grabbed out of the fridge directly at his head, narrowly missing. "tōru got out later than me so its him you should be bullying."

"haru would never bully me," tōru said smugly, throwing an arm around the younger boy's shoulders, ignoring the sweat he had all over him. "he loves me too much."

"yeah yeah," her brother dismissed, shrugging off tōru's arm and giving a coy grin as he turned back around. "whatever you say. i'm going back to practicing so leave me alone unless you're making lunch."

the afternoon passed by quickly after their encounter, the two third years curled up absent-mindedly as a movie causally played on the television in front of them. the bright flashes of light served as distraction from the grey weather that pounded the windows outside, and tōru felt some sort of odd comfort in television whenever it rained; maybe it was because with one point and click he could control the television, unlike the pestering and unpredictable weather.

as the now black-and-white movie droned on and on, tōru traced his gentle fingertips along her hairline, dragging down along the bridge of her nose and over every feature of her face until he lined her lips. he gazed down at her face just below his, her back against his torso and pelvis.

a specific scene in the movie broadcasted itself to the two teens, echoing through the girls house and into their eardrums as it rang through the speakers. it tinged a memory in the back of tōru's mind, a distant thought of his mother sparking a pang of sad warmth inside of him, and he found himself saying the words along with the actors, looking down at the girl in his lap as he did so.

_"you want the moon?"_ his voice was quiet and soothing, his finger still tracing the brushstrokes of lips on her face. if she was a painting, she'd be the most prized in the world, he decided. _"just say the word and i'll throw a lasso around it and pull it down."_

she glanced up at how he suddenly started speaking, eyes widening as hers met his and she realized that he was saying it to her. the words in the movie, words that meant that the man loved the women enough to get her anything she wanted—get her the moon—and he was saying them to her.

_"hey, that's a pretty good idea,"_ he finished, a teasing grin now resting upon his face, eyes crinkled and cheeks stretched. she felt him grow closer and closer as he leaned above her and just before she plunged into the deep end, the split second before his lips met hers and her whole head went underwater, she followed his lead and jinxed words with the actress on screen.

_"i'll take it."_


End file.
